


to falter, to fall

by wbtrashking



Category: Sonic the Hedgehog - All Media Types
Genre: Anthro, High School AU, M/M, Miscommunication, Rivals to Lovers
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-03-13
Updated: 2020-03-13
Packaged: 2021-02-28 17:48:25
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 8,172
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23121253
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/wbtrashking/pseuds/wbtrashking
Summary: “Hello again,” Maria sighs. “To what do I owe the pleasure to this time? Smack talk? Bad day? One of you stepped on the other one’s shoes?”“That’s the stupidest thing I’ve ever heard,” Shadow snaps. “He was out of line, so I had to handle the situation.”"Handle the situation.” Sonic parrots him, forming air quotes around the words.  “Great job with that—really adored our chat. I especially loved the part where you undermined everything I had to say by threatening to knock my teeth out.”Sonic and Shadow's rivalry is a hot topic among their peers, but when their counselor decides that enough's enough, they have to suffer through their punishmentstogetheror face the consequences.In order to bury the hatchet for good, they have to try to understand each other, and along the way, they discover that pure hatred isn't what's been fueling their fights after all.
Relationships: Shadow the Hedgehog/Sonic the Hedgehog
Comments: 5
Kudos: 179





	to falter, to fall

Sonic lands a sharp kick squarely in the middle of Shadow’s chest. The black and red hedgehog snarls in retaliation, cuffing his opponent in the ear, making Sonic hiss.

The fight lasts several minutes, their fellow students peering at them from nearby classroom windows, booing and jeering at the easily-recognized rivals. By the time a burly teacher manages to come over and forcibly pull them apart by the napes, they’ve already beaten the ever-loving shit out of each other. Shadow has blood streaming out his nose, cradling his left arm delicately because it hurts like hell. Sonic’s clothes are ripped, his body covered in sickly-green patches that will soon bloom into dark purple bruises.

The man holding them is doling out reprimands, but Shadow still takes the time to spit on Sonic in disdain before they reach the counselor’s office, ostensibly earning himself a longer sentence of detention, or suspension, or whatever punishment she decides to slap them with this time.

Maria Robotnik doesn’t look surprised to see them.

Both hedgehogs cross their arms as the blonde woman sighs. “Hello again.” It’s only been two weeks since their last nasty brawl, and frankly, she’s tired of seeing them wind up here. They aren’t bad kids, though―just a little misguided and short-tempered. “To what do I owe the pleasure to this time?”

Neither of them answer, so she prods them again.

“Smack talk? Bad day? One of you stepped on the other one’s shoes?”

“That’s the stupidest thing I’ve ever heard,” Shadow snaps. “He was out of line, so I had to handle the situation.”

" _Handle the situation_.” Sonic parrots him, forming air quotes around the words. “Great job with that—really adored our chat. I especially loved the part where you undermined everything I had to say to the freshman by threatening to knock my teeth out.”

Maria holds up a hand, hoping that the gesture will encourage them to stop shouting. It works; both boys turn up their noses, scowling deeply. “I understand that you’re having trouble communicating, as usual, but you’re both integral members of the school’s track team. Neither of you can afford to have another major mark on your records with your terrible attendance logs, so I have a proposal. You’ll have two in-school-suspensions off the books and then you’ll serve thirty hours of community service. I’ll choose what you’re doing, and you’ll both do your best to speak to each other _without fighting_ ,” she stresses. “If I receive word that this doesn’t work out, not only will you both be removed from the team and potentially expelled from the school, you'll be taken to juvenile court. Am I being clear?”

Sonic nods. Shadow glares at her, loudly broadcasting his displeasure.

“Good. If you’ll wait outside while I make a phone call, I’ll get everything organized.” The students slink away in terse silence, forepaws jammed in their pockets. As soon as the door closes behind them, Maria dials a familiar number. “Blaze? I’ve got a couple hedgehogs I’d like to send over to you. What’ve you got available next week?”

  


* * *

  


The whole mess between Sonic and Shadow dates back to sophomore year.

Shadow had transferred to Mobius High with glowing praises from his old teachers and previous coaches—he’d always had good grades and outstanding times in his track heats. He could be abrasive, and his standoffish, no-nonsense nature could rub his peers the wrong way at times, but for the most part, he’d been an asset.

He’d met Sonic before, of course, at competitions. Shadow had run against him in three regional championships, only to lose against the blue hedgehog each time by mere milliseconds. They’d never had real conversations, though. They would shake paws, murmur good game, and go their separate ways.

Things started to go to shit when Shadow realized that Sonic had a _clique_. It had been a ridiculous notion to him. Everyone in Sonic’s posse walked around like Sonic had hung the moon, taking his word as law.

Sonic doesn’t necessarily abuse his power, but he frequently doesn’t mind his language or his manners, which has always pissed Shadow off to no end. His fury is further exacerbated by Sonic’s groupies, who often wind up copying his flippant behavior and bad habits.

Noting the way he’d been glaring daggers at Sonic, a bat named Rouge had come over to Shadow with a smile, assuring him that he hadn't been alone in finding the whole dynamic strange. “It’s wild, right? Sonic doesn’t mean to be a jerk, but everyone acts like he can do no wrong, which just boosts his ego and makes things worse. Between you and me, I think he's probably just playing up that persona for the crowd.”

Rouge would have remained his only ally, but one fateful afternoon, Shadow had finally snapped. He’d caught Sonic saying something uncouth to one of his teammates and he’d taken swift, affirmative action. After letting Sonic’s obnoxious attitude towards their peers slide for weeks, it’d been the last straw—Shadow’s arm had moved before he’d had time to think, and the next thing he knew, he’d been wrestling Sonic to the ground, snarling at the taller hedgehog.

Because Maria is Shadow’s guardian and benefactor, he’d been aware that she would be upset with him. Her discontent was all the more suffocating because he’d wound up in the counselor’s office only a month after transferring. He hadn’t minded her sorrowful blue gaze all that much at the time―he had done the right thing, and he had no plans to apologize for his actions.

After that, Shadow had gained a cult-like following of his own. Everyone had exaggerated the details of the fight, turning it into some sort of action-movie sequence that couldn’t have happened in real life. Most of the people who flock around him make him want to scream in frustration, but he stays calm. Their blind adoration is better than them blithely drinking whatever old-school machismo nonsense Sonic had been selling them.

Neither of them intend for things to go so far, but in a matter of days, they become the talk of the whole school, dividing their peers into two stark sections. They’re both exceedingly stubborn, refusing to budge on even the smallest of issues. Worse still, the period between their fights gets shorter and shorter every year.

Their coach will never reprimand them—he needs Sonic and Shadow’s running records to boost his career. That just leaves the braver teachers to handle business, and separating them is more pain than it's worth. Both hedgehogs tear quills out of each other’s heads in their scrapes, and they’re usually going so fast that they have to be taken off guard in order to be caught.

Now, their extreme unwillingness to compromise has led to this―Shadow stuck pulling weeds in the school garden, getting dirt all over his nice jeans with Sonic groaning a couple feet away from him.

Shadow’s not exactly having a great time either, but Sonic’s whining is making him even angrier about the state of affairs. Determined to be the bigger hedgehog about things, Shadow keeps his mouth glued shut. Unfortunately for him, Sonic is equally hellbent on having a conversation.

“I’m not usually trying to get into a fight with you,” Sonic grumbles. “That’s why I’m so confused. We’re a step away from winding up in juvie because you think everything that comes out of my mouth is a declaration of war. The heck did I do to you?”

“Your existence is usually enough of an eyesore for me to lash out,” Shadow begrudgingly responds. He can’t help it. The quips just fly out of his mouth when he talks to Sonic. He really should be careful. His unfiltered sass is what got them in this fix in the first place.

“Okay, great. But why is that, specifically?”

Shadow puts down the spade in his paw, glaring at the green-eyed hedgehog. “Where should I start? The way you don’t respect anybody else’s opinion but your own? How much you adore the sound of your own voice? Your blatantly repressed homosexuality?”

“ _Woah—_ all of that was out of left field.” Sonic reels back in shock. “First things first, I’m not gay.”

Shadow snorts. “I said _repressed_ homosexuality. It could also be bisexuality, I suppose. I wouldn’t care either way if you weren’t such a dick, but here we are.”

Sonic frowns. “I’ve had three girlfriends in the last three years.”

“Next topic of conversation,” Shadow grunts, resisting the urge to choke his teammate out and leave him for dead in the field.

“I respect Tails,” Sonic says, staunchly defending himself.

“Because you have to, or he wouldn’t help you pass all of your classes.” Shadow punctuates the sentence by tying up his first trash bag and opening a new one.

“He’s my best friend. I practically raised the l’il dude.”

Shadow looks up at Sonic with a dry, dirty look. “Your _best friend_ who you’d immediately ignore if you found something more interesting to do with your time, and whom you frequently interrupt when he’s talking to you about scientific discoveries during lunch?”

The blue hedgehog narrows his eyes. “Why do you know all this?”

“Because nobody will shut up about you and your crew for _five fucking minutes_ ,” Shadow snaps, a moment away from grabbing Sonic’s collar and throwing a fist, but he refrains at the last second. “Mobius High isn’t that big. Half the student body is on a waitlist to speak to you, Chaos only knows why. Your companions admire you, obviously, but you don’t necessarily deserve their respect. Keep expecting them to follow you into your messes around without question and you’ll be sorry when they wise up and walk away.”

With that, Shadow stalks off to a different part of the area. It’s blissfully silent for the rest of the afternoon.

If he had known that all it would take to get Sonic to shut up was telling him the brutal, cutting truth, Shadow would have done so a lot sooner.

  


* * *

  


Their next day of suspension is more traditional. They have self-study to do in a shoddily-lit classroom, but they’re lucky—their advisor today is Vector, who doesn’t have any interest in properly supervising students. He does his job to earn a paycheck; he can’t be bothered to do it well when his employers aren’t putting bonuses and raises on the line.

“Just finish your homework or somethin’,” the crocodile tells them while throwing on his headphones, functionally ignoring the hedgehogs for the rest of the afternoon.

Sonic surprises Shadow by staying on task for an hour before he inevitably gets bored, running laps around the room as fast as he can to burn off some steam. Then, he starts fidgeting with his pencils, packing and unpacking his bag. He even attempts to take a nap before finally giving up the ghost. As he slides into the seat right beside Shadow, Sonic starts talking. “You were right.”

The words startle Shadow so badly that he drops his pen, putting down his essay paper with a scowl. “I often am. About what, exactly?”

“You made me realize that I was being a bad friend. I apologized. I told everybody that I wanted to be more considerate, asked them what _they_ wanted to do the next time we hung out. I guess I just wanted to say thanks.”

“No problem.” Shadow is content to drop the conversation there and leave it at that, but Sonic puts a paw down on Shadow’s desk, continuing to vie for attention. “What now?”

“Last time, you implied that I was self-centered, and I wanted to know why, since you’re so observant.”

Shadow’s face is deadpan, voice flat as he says, “You can’t be serious.”

“Look, you already know that I don’t notice what’s happening around me. I have ADHD and I'm not exactly an honors student. Explain it to me in simple terms.” He puts his muzzle on the back of a gloved paw, tilting his head a bit to broadcast his open curiosity.

It suddenly dawns on Shadow that Sonic is genuinely interested in what he has to say. _There’s a first time for everything_ , he thinks. “When we usually get new people on the team, the first thing you do is tell them to keep up, to go faster.”

“Well, duh.”

Shadow shoots Sonic a withering glare. “That’s not advice. They can’t improve if you don’t give them specific feedback, like putting more weight on their toes, getting shoes that are better for running, or making sure not to breathe through their mouths.”

Sonic frowns in response. “All that stuff’s obvious, isn’t it?”

“Not to them,” Shadow says, shaking his head. “Anyways, even on the off chance that you _do_ have something useful to say, you find some way to squeeze in jabs at them for lagging behind, and you don’t keep an eye out for the quiet ones that’re discouraged—you're focused on improving your times. That’s not a bad thing, but you’re supposed to be the team captain. I feel like I’m constantly wiping your ass when it comes to the little things.”

The blue hedgehog blankly stares at him. “Your solution to that problem is to get into fights with me?”

“It’s cause and effect,” Shadow snarls. “You talk shit, you get hit.”

“Love the anger management skills,” Sonic lazily drawls.

“Fuck off.”

That said, the bell rings, and Sonic stands up in a hurry, relieved to get out of the stuffy room. Vector yawns while opening the door, signaling that his charges are free to go. 

Sonic pauses in the doorway to smile at the other hedgehog. “Thanks for telling me all this. I’ll work on it— _hey_ , don't give me that look.” Shadow reins himself in, sure that his open disgust is what Sonic is referring to. “I _will_. I’m trying my best to get along with you, y’know. It wouldn’t hurt you to meet me halfway.”

After saying his piece, Sonic zips off, leaving a blue trail of light behind him as he goes. Shadow puts his homework away slowly, mulling over the words. He has no intention of becoming friends with the school’s most popular class clown, but he’s not going to become the type of creature he hates, either.

  


* * *

  


Maria stops over at Shadow’s place with snacks and he lets her in without much fuss—it’s largely thanks to her that he lives in such a lush apartment, after all. 

Her rich, but admittedly insane uncle has never pulled out any stops in spoiling his niece rotten. Likewise, Maria has never shied away from taking care of her small friend. He’d been abandoned at a young age, left for dead in a cold, grungy alleyway; Maria had taken him in, given him clothes and shelter, made sure that he could fend for himself.

When Shadow had mentioned that his old high school had a subpar track-and-field team in freshman year, she’d made the necessary arrangements to move him here. Furthermore, this location has the added benefit of being within walking distance of her townhouse. Since the blonde woman won’t let Shadow turn her money away, he puts most of his excess funds into a savings account and uses the rest of it on tricking out his motorcycle.

Shadow flops on the couch beside Maria, popping the tab on a can of soda with a sigh. “You don’t have to come over and check on me every weekend.”

“But it’s so much fun to see your grumpy little face,” Maria teases. She opens a bag of chips before peeling the plastic wrapper off of a vegetable dipping tray. “I think you’ll be excited to know that you’ll be building houses as part of your community service next week.”

“Ugh,” Shadow grouses, sticking out his tongue.

Maria pinches his cheek lovingly. “Be grateful, mister. You could’ve been babysitting.”

The look of terror in his amber eyes makes her giggle. “Please tell me that wasn’t your backup plan.”

Maria pops a carrot into her mouth. “Reprobates don’t get to be choosy about their punishments. Lucky for you, Blaze had some spots open on the construction team, so there aren’t any tiny, sticky fingers to deal with.”

“Good. Otherwise, I would’ve been forced to put you out of your misery.” 

They lounge around and catch up for a bit, turning on the television when the conversation trails off. Shadow’s on the verge of falling asleep when he feels a hand running through his quills. “I hope you two can get along this time. It makes me sad to see you all banged up.”

In the three years that Shadow’s lived in Mobius, Maria’s never breathed a word about this to him. She’s filed records about their fights time and time again, pursed her lips at the hedgehogs, and fixed Shadow with many a disappointed look, but she’s hidden her true feelings about the scrapes. 

Guiltily, Shadow wonders if she’s cried over this—she used to, when they were younger, clinging to Shadow’s arms and begging him not to bully smaller creatures on the playground. Maria is the sole reason that he has a conscience, why Sonic is the only one he’s challenged in recent years. He sees too much of his old attitude in the blue teen. Sonic can be overly cocky, abrasive, and self-motivated; if he keeps it up, he’ll be friendless and depressed by the time he’s twenty. Shadow would know.

He falls into a fitful sleep when Maria eventually lets herself out.

He figures that he should be taking the whole making amends thing more seriously if doing so will alleviate some of Maria’s stress.

  


* * *

  


“Are you coming to the party next weekend?” Amy asks. Her voice is bubbly and expectant. Sonic's been going to great lengths to reestablish his bonds with his friends lately, and Knuckles figures there’s no better way to do so than to hold a rowdy celebration, complete with booze and a makeshift dance floor.

“Probably,” Sonic replies, coming to a stop in front of the building where he’s supposed to meet Shadow and Blaze, the volunteer organization’s representative. “Just depends on how the day goes. You know I don’t like making plans.”

He catches a dark red blur out of the corner of his eye, but the whirr of an engine is what really steals his attention away from whatever Amy’s babbling about in his ear.

“Sorry, Ames, I’ll call you back,” he says, hanging up in a hurry. The moment his communicator turns off, he gapes at none other than Shadow peeling himself off of the sleekest motorcycle Sonic has ever seen. “Woah.”

A gloved paw playfully slaps him in the cheek. “Keep your mouth open like that and you’ll catch flies.” Cocking a paw on one hip, Shadow smirks at his rival. “But I do understand the awe. I’ve worked hard on Raven.”

“You named your bike,” Sonic groans. “Of course you did.” After a pause, he puts a claw under his chin. “Hang on a second. _Raven_? That’s way too simple for you.”

Shadow scowls. “What do you mean by that?”

“That you’re the type of guy who probably loves grunge and who paints his nails black with a red pentagram lamp glowing above his head.”

“Okay, first of all, don't knock it ‘til you try it. Secondly, her name is Scáthach Darkness Raven the 3rd, and if you ever disrespect her, I’ll kill you.”

Sonic rolls his eyes. “Why would I do that? We just established that I think your bike is rad. Did you need it for some reason?”

“No. I like tinkering with things, so working on my motorcycle is more of a hobby than anything else,” Shadow replies. “Besides, do you have some awe-inspiring reason why you don’t like following rules? Or why you enjoy outrunning everything else on the planet?”

The blue hedgehog shrugs his shoulders. “Not really. Rules are boring and running is fun.”

“Exactly.”

Before they can continue the conversation, a purple-furred cat emerges from the building, startling both of them. They’d been expecting a human. With creatures on their planet outnumbered ten-to-one, it’s uncommon to have them in business leadership, but not wholly unheard of. “Shadow? Sonic?” When they turn around and offer their paws, she shakes them in greeting before letting them in. “Glad to have you two here. C’mon, I’ll introduce you to the team.”

Inside, they meet the crew of people with friendly faces and paint-stained t-shirts. Blaze’s coworker, a hedgehog named Silver, tells Shadow and Sonic about the project they’ll be working on, then everyone piles onto a bus for thirty minutes.

Sonic fidgets restlessly throughout the entire ride. Shadow side-eyes him. “I can’t help it,” Sonic mutters. “I would’ve met everyone there if they’d told me the alternative was being trapped inside of a vehicle.”

“To be fair, this is part of our punishment.”

“I’m pretty sure Ms. Robotnik wasn’t planning on torturing me.”

Shadow raises an eyebrow. “Melodramatic much?”

Sonic huffs, tapping his claw against a windowpane. “Yeah, yeah. Laugh it up.”

“I wouldn’t,” Shadow flatly replies. “This obviously bothers you. What’s the point in mocking you for something you can’t control?”

Green eyes study Shadow intently. Noting the lack of deception on the dark-furred hedgehog’s face, Sonic offers him a wry smile. “Y’know, I’m really starting to wonder why we’ve been at each other’s throats. You’re a pretty nice guy.”

Shadow sneers at him in response, as if to prove that he’s as big and bad as he acts, but all it does is make Sonic giggle.

Sonic stops talking for a while, softly singing to himself as he bounces his legs. Shadow looks up from his communicator when he sees the other teen grow silent and still out of the corner of his eye. “What’s wrong?”

“I was thinking about something you said last week.”

“Mm.” Shadow murmurs to let Sonic know he’s listening.

“You thought I was just pretending to be straight,” Sonic murmurs, eyes darting around to make sure the other passengers aren’t paying attention to their conversation. “Why?”

Shadow folds his arms over his chest. “Look, I’m sorry. I was just being a jackass because you were getting on my nerves. I shouldn’t have made an assumption.”

Sonic elbows him sharply in the side, which makes Shadow snap his jaws. “Don’t backpedal, dude. You never say stuff you don’t mean, so just tell me.”

Amber eyes narrow. “And you’ll just sit there and listen, will you? Because when we usually get to this point in a conversation, we start yelling at each other until I feel compelled to strangle you.”

“Yes,” Sonic impatiently replies, frowning at his classmate. “I don’t wanna get locked up any more than you do.”

A brief silence falls between them while Shadow gathers his thoughts. “It was mostly intuition; takes a gay to recognize a gay.” At the revelation, Sonic’s eyes grow appropriately wide, but he doesn’t make any snide remarks. Shadow thinks that’s rather mature of him, all things considered. “You’re awkward around girls, you have no sense of personal space around guys, and word on the street is that you’re still a virgin.”

Sonic sputters. “Wha—I’m—who told you that?”

Shadow smirks back at him. “Must I continue to remind you exactly how public your life is? You’re absent at least twice a week—that's plenty of time for your exes and groupies to spread rumors."

The blue hedgehog grumbles. “Nobody cares about my privacy?”

“Not really, no.”

Sonic sighs. “Well, whatever. It’s not like it’s a secret, and you’re not wrong. Girls are so... _different_. Half the time, I can’t figure out what the heck they’re talking about. None of my friends are trying to get me to make a commitment to them, and if I ask them to go do something reckless with me, they bail me out before things get too nasty. Even better―they _usually_ don’t chew me out for refusing to take life seriously.”

Shadow hums. “What about Amy?”

“She used to be a little clingy, but everybody grows up. We’re cool now. I'd never date her, though. It’d be like dating my sister.”

Before they can continue their conversation, Blaze interrupts them and the bus comes to a stop.

  


* * *

  


The humans on the construction team tease Shadow and Sonic ruthlessly about their small stature and the reason they’re being forced to help out, but they’re still thrilled to have them on board. Both of them are skilled at following directions, and their speed makes laying down the concrete an expeditious experience. 

Silver compliments them on their teamwork during the lunch break, handing them bottles of water and towels they can use to mop up their sweat. Shadow rolls his eyes, but Sonic seems rather proud. He’s taking the stipulation of their punishment in stride, doing his best to make peace with Shadow once and for all.

The work is so exhausting that Sonic falls asleep on Shadow’s shoulder on the ride home. The warm weight against him lulls Shadow into a light doze himself, and they’re both jarred awake by the bus’s overhead lights flickering on when they stop.

Blaze makes her rounds the next few afternoons, being sure to tell Sonic and Shadow about the homework assignments they have due when they go back to school. Each day, their tasks change, but they’re all related to construction—painting walls, helping create framework with the workshop attendants, etc. She makes sure to give them pointers when necessary, but she leaves them to their own devices more often than not.

At the end of the week, she gives them papers with a stamp on the bottom acknowledging that they’ve worked the required hours.

“Now, if the two of you could build houses together, I think you can make it through the rest of this year without another fistfight, don’t you?”

Shadow shrugs noncommittally. Sonic gives her a big smile and a thumbs-up.

“Good luck,” Blaze says, waving as the teens walk out of the office.

With everything anticlimactically coming to a close, Sonic stretches absently and Shadow yawns, pointed fangs peeking out as he does. With the sun setting behind them, Sonic holds out a paw. “Truce?”

“Hmph,” Shadow says, shaking on it. “I suppose there’s no joy in fighting you when I know you’re just a bi-curious disaster.”

“Same goes for you, since I know you’re just a big goth gay who named his precious motorcycle.”

Shadow jabs a claw in Sonic’s face. “What did I say about respecting Raven?”

“I didn’t disrespect her—I just don’t _get_ it,” Sonic replies, pushing Shadow’s accusatory digit out of his face. “What’s so fun about riding on something that only goes seventy miles per hour?”

The dark hedgehog barks out a laugh, patting the seat of his bike. “Why don’t you hop on and I’ll show you?”

Never one to back down from a challenge, Sonic slides onto the leather seat behind Shadow, flashing a wild grin. “If you don’t make this good for me, I’ll never let you live it down.”

Shadow waits for Sonic to get comfortable while he checks his mirrors and flips the kickstand up. The machine rumbles to life beneath them and he snorts at the way the hedgehog riding passenger glances around for a place to put his forepaws.

“Grab my waist, moron,” Shadow instructs him, yelling over the sound of the engine. “Don't be shy about it or you’ll fall off.”

Without further ado, Sonic burrows into Shadow’s backside and the black hedgehog zips off into the sunset. He dodges around other passengers, taking a roundabout method of getting off of the street which involves doing wheelies to go up old angled wire-mesh fences and bouncing off the tops of dumpsters.

Sonic whoops with joy at various points, screaming his delight in Shadow’s ears as the wind whips around them. He’s run faster than that, surely, but the novelty of the experience isn’t lost on him. Shadow pulls to a stop at a gas station the next town over, chuckling at the state of Sonic’s unruly quills. “So?”

“That was awesome.”

“You’re welcome,” Shadow proudly replies. He takes a seat on the curb, twisting the top of a bottle of soda off.

Sonic opens his own drink while pacing around, unable to sit still for long, as usual. He looks so inordinately delighted that his next words throw Shadow for a loop. “Say, Shads? How’d you know you were gay?”

Shadow balks, taking a moment to regain his bearings. “ _Shads_?”

“What? You gonna tell me that nicknames are a no-go, too? Geez.”

“No. I never could’ve imagined that you would refer to me in such a cordial manner.”

“We’ve come a long way these past two weeks. I’d like to think we’re friends, or something close enough.” Sonic suddenly gasps. “I’m not your first friend in Mobius, am I?”

“Rouge is my only _confidant_. Our truce is still in its early stages, meaning that the status of our camaraderie is still up for negotiation.”

Sonic rolls his eyes. “Uh huh. So you’ll take any old schlub out on Raven for a joyride, huh?”

“Do _not_ push your luck,” Shadow warns the other hedgehog. Huffing, he gets back on track. “To answer your question, I was never particularly attracted to women. My guardian assured me that it was natural and quite common for humans and creatures to have varying sexualities when I was in middle school. I did what many that age did—I went and I found porn that interested me. Being gay made me pretty isolated from my teammates, though. We had very little in common.”

“I’m sure it didn’t help that you’re a snappy little gremlin either, because _that’s_ so conducive to group-activities.”

Shadow refuses to dignify that barb with a response, so he barrels ahead. “ _Anyways_. Rouge is bi, so we often commiserate over the lack of hot guys at our school.”

Sonic raises an eyebrow. “The bat who’s always on-and-off with Knuckles?”

“Does he have a cousin named Tikal?”

“Yeah.”

Shadow snorts. “That’s her. She may or may not be sleeping with both of them, but I try my best to stay the hell out of her business.”

Sonic grows silent and Shadow has half a mind to be concerned about him, but the blue-furred teen turns and smiles, almost like he can read Shadow’s mind. “I’m fine. I don’t talk _all_ the time.”

“Could’ve fooled me,” Shadow softly murmurs.

“I don’t like labels, y’know? They mess me up. I’ve been called the fastest thing alive since I was six, and that put me on dozens of daytime news slots. Reporters started knocking on my door all the time, and I figured I'd go along with whatever they said. I get money for doing what I love. Still, it gets overwhelming. Whenever I didn’t want to deal with the press, or my friends, or living alone, I went running, and most of the time, it made me feel better. But it doesn’t feel right to run from this.” Sonic scuffs the bottom of his well-worn shoes against the concrete, pausing long enough to flash Shadow a wobbly smile. “You sure do make me think a lot. How do you find time to relax with all that stuff buzzing around inside your head?”

Shadow shrugs. “I’m used to it. It isn’t easy, it just takes time.”

“Fair enough,” Sonic says. After a quick pause, he asks, “You wouldn’t wanna go to a party with me on Saturday, would you?”

“Not really my scene,” Shadow answers. “Besides, I don’t think your group likes me all that much.”

“Well, I like you, so they would too, if you’d give ‘em a chance.”

Shadow drains the last of his soda in one large gulp, humming absently. “I’ll think about it.”

“Cool.”

They exchange contact information before Sonic thanks Shadow for the ride and zips off. He has a lot of stuff to review with Tails before the night is over. Why Maria made plans for them to attend school on Friday after all this construction work is a mystery to Shadow, but he refuses to complain about it.

  


* * *

  


Rouge’s talons almost scratch him in the eye when she jerks in surprise. “ _You’re_ going to the party? The apocalypse is nigh.”

“Don’t remind me,” Shadow grumbles. “Also, be careful―you almost blinded me.”

The bat rolls her eyes, taking a towel damp with makeup remover to his eyelids. “Excuse me, your highness. By the way, you gotta stop sleeping in your mascara. You’re breaking out.”

“Who cares,” he flippantly replies.

“Well, well,” Rouge sing-songs, “I guess you’re finally ready to stop denying that you’re attracted to him at long last, huh?”

Shadow’s eyes fly open as he glares at his best friend. “Who said anything about being attracted to him? I just hate him a little less, that’s all.”

Her responding gaze is so deeply skeptical that it almost burns. “All the tousling? The tension? You two’ve been all up in each other’s faces for _years_ , and you expect me to believe you just made up one day without finally making a move on him?”

“I was fighting with him because he _annoyed me_.”

“Those beautiful blue quills, that come-hither stare, that fuckboy smile―oh, Sonic, take me now.” Rouge seductively teases him.

Shadow growls. “I could kill you right now. Don’t think I won’t.”

Rouge hums without a care in the world. “Yeah, yeah. Hurry up and sit still or I’ll never finish. I still have to groom your filthy claws.” She pulls out her brushes, finding the sharp, bright red palette that Shadow’s so fond of. “To be totally honest, I’m glad you two got over yourselves. Maybe things will finally settle down at school.”

“One can only hope.”

Shadow pays Rouge the requisite thirty bucks for helping him get freshened up before he tidies up his apartment, mulling around for something to do. He dreams up a thousand excuses to get out of going to the party that started an hour ago, but winds up drawing a blank. Sonic hadn’t mentioned any sort of dress code, so he pulls on a pair of clean black jeans and his favorite cropped jacket before running over to Knuckles’ house.

The echidna opens the door for him with a startled blink. “Hey, Shadow. Come on in.”

Everyone looks relaxed already, tipsy and playful as they mingle with plates of snacks in their paws. It’s crowded and loud inside, which Shadow hates, but he’s determined to spend at least thirty minutes here before stalking off to the patio to be alone.

Sonic ducks out of a conversation with an apology when he spots Shadow, grabbing his wrist with a gentle smile. “Glad you could make it.”

Shadow shrugs. “Didn’t have anything better to do.”

“Me neither, but don’t tell anybody. They’ll start making me promise to show up more often.” Shadow chuckles at that, which makes Sonic beam with pride. “Want something to drink?”

“Sure.”

The two of them wind up sneaking outside together, enjoying the relative quiet and the fresh air. Sonic is the first to break the silence. “Is it weird that I missed you yesterday?”

Shadow quirks a brow. “Even though we had practice?”

“Yeah, but we practically spent the last two weeks together glued to the hip. I got used to it.”

The dark-furred hedgehog hums. “Guess so. I figured you would’ve spent every free moment of the day catching up with your _squad_.”

Sonic play-punches Shadow in the arm. “My _f_ _riends_ , Shadow. You don’t have to act like you’re allergic to the word.”

“What if I am allergic to it?”

Green eyes roll. “You can keep being a melodramatic goth all you want, but I refuse to let you brow-beat me into calling my friends my posse, clique, crew, squad, or gang.”

Shadow scoffs. “You think this is the height of my theatricality? I’m not even wearing half of my jewelry.”

Sonic groans. “Of course you aren’t.”

The two of them stay outside for most of the night, drinking until the stupidest things make them laugh. Even when they run out of poignant things to talk about and when other party-goers stop by to chat with them, they continue to enjoy each other’s company. 

It’s laughable, how easy it is to move on.

While they’re both deliriously buzzed, Sonic slurs out a question. “What’s it like?”

“Hmm?” Shadow is half-curled up in a ball, struggling to stay alert because he’s a sleepy drunk.

“Dating guys. Kissing.”

“Weird. Fine, but also weird.”

Sonic giggles. “You said weird twice.”

“My first real crush _was_ weird. First date was _worse._ The kissing has been mostly awkward and degradi―humili― _bad_ ,” Shadow finally says, draining his cup full of whatever alcoholic concoction Knuckles made for this party. “Nothing’s been serious, and none of my experiences have been memorable. I’m a cynic, so I’m not exactly expecting _sparks_ to fly or anything, but is it insane to want something more than a nasty one night stand?”

The blue hedgehog shakes his head. “No, it’s not. You deserve better than that.”

“Ha.” Shadow closes his eyes. “I’m not sure that I do.”

With a dash of bravery, Sonic leans over and plants a kiss on the left side of Shadow’s muzzle.

“I thought you were still sorting out your sexuality, Sonic,” the dark hedgehog murmurs, amber eyes curiously studying his teammate.

“So you _do_ know my name. I was kinda worried, since you’ve never said it,” Sonic teases. Shadow rolls his eyes. “Anyways, I’ve always been the kind who acts first and asks questions later. I like _you._ How was that kiss?”

“Five out of ten. Points for surprise. Missing points for creativity and lack of finesse.”

Wagging a sly claw in Shadow’s face, Sonic whispers, “You never said anything about not liking it, which means it’s fine if I try again.”

Sonic’s right, so Shadow parts his lips and lets the tentative youth try again. He leans into it this time, cradling the blue hedgehog’s back spines carefully. 

Shadow is pleased by the way Sonic shivers when he flicks out his tongue. When they pull apart to breathe, he says, “This is the stupidest thing we’ve ever done by far.”

“Probably,” Sonic agrees, and then they dive right back into a fervent kiss.

  


* * *

  


Amy is helping tidy up in the twilight hours when she stumbles upon them. Sonic is passed out, gangly limbs tangled up with Shadow’s. They’re both heavy sleepers, so they don’t startle when her phone makes a shutter sound, and she’s grateful―the pink hedgehog is sure that she’ll never get another opportunity to create photographic evidence of Shadow letting Sonic be the big spoon.

A couple hours later, Shadow wakes up bleary-eyed and desperate for caffeine, so he peels himself off of his sweaty sleeping companion and stumbles into an unfamiliar kitchen.

Five sets of eyes turn to him when he walks in, chatter dying off as they leer at him. “Morning, Casanova,” Rouge greets him from the chaise, where she’s curled up between Tikal and Knuckles with a bowl of cereal balanced on her knees. “Where’s your partner in crime?”

He holds up his middle claw, which only makes her laugh. She knows better than to talk to him before he’s had his coffee.

Tikal’s calm, lulling voice is a direct contrast to Knuckles’s gravelly tones, but everyone’s pretty quiet, all things considered, likely because they’re as hungover as Shadow is. Amy and Tails are chatting about dream vacations, but when they notice Shadow struggling to find filters, they take pity on him.

Shockingly, Sonic’s friends don’t tease him relentlessly about their hookup. If anything, they seem more curious about _him_ , acknowledging that they don’t know him very well and they plan to rectify that.

Sonic dashes in an hour later, looking panicked. Shadow waves at him casually from the couch he’s settled into and Sonic sighs with relief. Tails picks up Sonic’s nervous energy, coming over and patting his friend on the back. “Chill, bro. Your boyfriend’s not going anywhere.”

He flushes at the moniker. Green eyes dart over to Shadow, waiting to see his reaction before he replies. When Shadow nods a bit, Sonic smiles. “Right.”

  


* * *

  


_epilogue_

  


Sonic picks at his lunch nervously, practically vibrating out of his seat. Noting how jittery Sonic is, Shadow stares at him, amber gaze curious. When the blue-furred teenager doesn’t greet him, he turns to the rest of the group, but everyone else looks as puzzled as he is.

He taps Sonic’s shoulder; the other hedgehog nearly jumps out of his seat. “ _Chaos_ , you scared the mess outta me. Warn a guy before you sneak up on him.”

Shadow rolls his eyes. “Uh huh. What the hell’s got your tail in a twist?”

He chews on his lower lip for a long time, head swiveling around. “I don’t really wanna talk about it here. Wanna skip with me?”

“Sure.”

They zip outside unnoticed, moving so quickly that the teachers monitoring the lunch hall don’t have time to catch them. Their attendance record leaves much to be desired, but Maria has gone through extensive lengths to get those indiscretions pardoned―anything is better than having them fight tooth and nail twice a month.

When they reach one of their favorite places in town, a small hill that overlooks most of the city, Sonic continues to pace around. Shadow waits him out. “There were some scouts at the last meet,” he finally starts.

“Yes,” Shadow agrees, drawing the word out. He’d been there too, obviously.

“That may or may not have asked me if I was interested in joining the newly-organized national team for animals,” Sonic mumbles.

Shadow’s jaw drops. “Holy shit, Sonic.”

“I know,” he groans, dragging a paw down his face. “It’s a crazy-great opportunity. There’s still a lot of debate about creature-specific teams being formed. It’d be a groundbreaking honor.”

Amber eyes narrow. “If the next words out of your mouth are that you’re worried you won’t be up to the task, I’m going to strangle you in your sleep.”

“Wha― _no_ ,” Sonic sputters. “Me? Nervous about running? Not on your life, buddy.” With a huff, he leans against Shadow’s shoulder. “I’m worried about everything else. How my friends will get along without me. What’ll happen to _us_.” Shadow knowingly hums. “I always thought I’d be struggling to graduate from college and finding a job just to make ends meet, but then this lucky break fell right into my lap. It’s a lot to take in.”

“Do you _want_ to do it?”

Sonic blinks, reaching down to clench Shadow’s paw tightly. “Yeah. I always wanted to do _something_ to make a difference, but I didn’t exactly know how.”

Shadow kisses Sonic’s cheek. “Then do it. You don’t have the mental fortitude to be worried about anybody but yourself, anyways.”

“ _Hey_ ,” Sonic grouses. “I’ve gotten a lot better about that. You’ve told me so.”

“Better for you still means children have more social awareness than you,” Shadow chides him.

“You know, all of this is sounding like you don’t want me to give you your surprise on graduation day.”

Shadow scowls, glaring at his boyfriend. “Don’t you _dare_. Whatever it is, I don’t want it.”

Sonic theatrically puts a hand to his chest. “You wound me.”

With that, he hurries off, falling into an impromptu race against Shadow. Shadow gripes at him the whole way home, barking out threats.

  


* * *

  


Maria and Rouge take what feels like a thousand pictures before Shadow runs the hell out of dodge. He doesn’t know what it is about leaving high school to go join the millions in higher education that makes them so excited.

There’s no class or anything today, but the school always holds a watered-down shindig for the students before the graduation ceremony. Shadow is willing to bet that most years, the turnout is piss-poor. He wouldn’t even be here, except that Tails had _insisted_ that he come or Sonic would cry. 

Fortunately, or _un_ fortunately, for the school-board, Sonic still has a horde of obsessive fans cooing over him, and Shadow’s quieter, comparably large group keeps badgering him for his comm-number. 

He feels suffocated after ten minutes, ducking out of the main area for a moment. He pretends to hurl when he catches Tikal, Rouge, and Knuckles fumbling all over each other in the hallway. The bat flashes him a v for victory as he storms off, ready to book it out of the gathering entirely, regardless of the fact that he’d have to deal with Sonic’s bruised ego and his watery green eyes in the aftermath.

Suddenly, the crowd parts for the star of the day. Word’s already gotten out about Sonic's gig with the national track-and-field team, making him even more of a town hero. He blows kisses to the surrounding masses, and somebody from the faculty gives the tool a _microphone_ , for Chaos’ sake.

Dread suddenly pools in Shadow’s gut. _Oh no_. 

This must have something to do with Sonic’s terrible _surprise_.

“I’m sure most of you keep up with the rumors flying around school. Most of you are probably wondering why all those fights died off within the past six months, and I’ll tell you, I’m still a little curious myself.” The audience titters with laughter at the self-effacing joke. “Well, the truth is that I had some growing up to do. Somebody took it upon themselves to make sure that I was really the best I could be, and they’re still keeping me in check, helping make sure I hit the international scene with guns blazing.”

Crown asshole Sonic the Hedgehog holds out his gloved paw to Shadow, who is feeling equal parts avidly murderous that nobody stopped this from happening before it was too late and absurdly flattered that Sonic has chosen this very public occasion to come out of the closet.

“This is my boyfriend, Shadow, the second-fastest runner in the country, and the smartest guy I know―behind Tails.” There’s a quick round of applause from the crowd and a distinct whoop from somewhere offstage. “We’ve still got a lot to learn from each other, but I think I speak for the entire staff when I say that we’re just as glad as you are that we started holding hands instead of throwing punches.”

Maria hollers, which prompts her fellow teachers to cheer as well. Flushed scarlet with embarrassment, Shadow decides that he’s going to decimate everyone in the building the minute he has the chance.

“That said, here’s to many more bright years ahead, and your continued support as I keep on running faster than the speed of sound!”

A huge round of whoops and screams breaks out as he signs off. With the crowd revved up, Sonic suddenly curls an arm around Shadow’s waist, dipping him low for an ostentatious kiss. Shadow has no choice but to put his arms around Sonic’s neck or risk hitting the floor. When Sonic pulls them back up, Shadow elbows him in the side, but all their play-fighting does is entice the audience to break out in a fresh round of cheers and applause.

The staff has to forcibly reorganize the students after that, and in the ensuing disarray, Sonic and Shadow slip away unnoticed.

  


* * *

  


Back at Shadow’s apartment, Sonic collapses against the door breathlessly. “That was _amazing_.”

“I’ll get you back for this,” Shadow growls. “Mark my words.”

“I’m so scared,” Sonic sing-songs, draping his arms over Shadow’s shoulders. “Arrest me, officer.”

“If Maria wasn’t coming over tonight, I’d paint these walls with your blood.”

Sonic rolls his eyes. “How romantic.”

Catching Sonic off guard, Shadow swipes a quick kiss from his boyfriend, smirking at the shocked look on the blue hedgehog’s face. “That’s the last kiss you’re getting for the next month.”

“A _month_?”

“Maybe you should’ve listened to me and cancelled your big surprise.”

Sonic huffs. “No _way_. Deep down, you loved it. I know you did, because you would’ve destroyed me otherwise, and I’d be eating food through a straw for the next week.”

Shadow scoffs. “I maintain my right to remain silent.”

Sonic sneaks in one last peck on Shadow's cheek before running off, narrowly avoiding a punch in the arm. The rest of the evening devolves into Maria babbling their praises, petting them with pride, Sonic’s friends unapologetically piling into Shadow’s apartment to hang out, and Rouge mercilessly lording her superiority over her best friend, sprinkling in a couple compliments when the timing is right.

Sonic’s puns are terrible, as always. Shadow’s dark humor is as unsettling and cynical as usual. But when things get awkward, Sonic and Shadow just turn and smile at each other, taking each day in stride.

Neither of them would have things any other way.

**Author's Note:**

> me, playing sa2 and reading idw comics at 3am: "when will you learn...that your actions...have _consequences_ "
> 
> there's so many fun things i didn't get to put in here that i wanted to ;A;
> 
> -sonic's "meeting the fam" thing with maria  
> -rouge and shadow's matching lgbt t-shirts when they get to college  
> -sonic's whole backstory  
> -shadow thinking about joining police/military/etc while sonic is abroad
> 
> idk if i'm gonna continue with a couple offshoot fics later, but it's definitely a possibility - i desperately wanted to finish this because i couldn't _sleep_ , i was so excited to get this off my chest.
> 
> anyways, i truly hope you enjoyed the read! tysm! ♡♥♡  
> ✧tumblr: **[quillifer](https://quillifer.tumblr.com/)**


End file.
